Biscuits & Chocolate Gravy


I wanted to know more about the history of biscuits with chocolate gravy because it’s definitely a Southern thing, but also highly regional, so I turned to the Southern Foodways Alliance, an organization in Mississippi that traces the roots of Southern cooking.


The alliance cannot pinpoint the exact origin, but I did find an article on the topic and here’s a snippet:


“People who adore chocolate gravy understand these things:


It is called ‘gravy’ because long ago, any roux-thickened sauce made in a skillet, whether savory or sweet, was called gravy. Warm chocolate gravy is sometimes called “soppin’ chocolate” because it is usually served with hot biscuits for a special breakfast, although no one in their right mind would turn it down as a dessert. Southerners do not shy away from dousing their biscuits in something sweet and syrupy.


Chocolate gravy is similar in flavor to chocolate pudding, but thinner and contains no eggs.


We’ll never know for sure, but chocolate gravy probably originated somewhere in the Mountain South and spread through the so-called hillbilly diaspora. The Oxford Encyclopedia of Food and Drink in America theorizes that it might have been an offshoot of a trading network between Spanish Louisiana and the Tennessee Valley, bringing “Mexican-style breakfast chocolate to the Appalachians.” The entry also suggests that it could have been passed down from Spanish colonies on the East Coast in the 16th and 17th centuries by the mixed-race ethnic group known as the Melungeons.”


Where ever it originated, I think we can all agree on one thing: it’s mighty delicious.


This recipe was shared by Charlene Moser of Pineville, who is 80 years old.


Chocolate gravy is similar in flavor to chocolate pudding, but thinner and contains no eggs.


Biscuits: 2 cups flour 2 teaspoons baking powder


1 teaspoon sugar 1


1 cup butter ⁄3


⁄4 ⁄2


2 cup milk Preheat oven to 450 degrees.


Sift together flour, baking powder, sugar and salt. Cut in the butter. Then add the lightly mix in the milk. You don’t want to overwork the dough. Lightly knead and then roll or pat into ½ inch thickness and the cut out the biscuits and place in a buttered pan. Bake 10-12 minutes.


teaspoon salt


Chocolate Gravy: 3 tablespoons cocoa


3 tablespoons cornstarch 1


⁄4 teaspoon salt


1 cup sugar 2 cups milk 2 tablespoons butter 1 teaspoon vanilla


In a large skillet, mix together the cocoa, cornstarch, salt, sugar and milk. Cook slowly stirring constantly until thickened. Once thickened, add the butter and vanilla and serve over biscuits.


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Living Well i May/June 2017 31


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